What are the games that define PC history? Civilization, perhaps. Doom. Ultima. You could go back a little further and choose Rogue and The Oregon trail, or maybe jump to the boomer shooter heyday with the likes of Half-Life and Unreal. Either way, it’s a competitive field – if we’re talking about the games that made the PC what it is now, and shaped perhaps the entire culture, we’re talking exclusively about the stonest and coldest of classics. Inspiring the likes of Dishonored, Prey, and in fact the whole immersive sim genre – and co-created by developers who would later help build the likes of BioShock and Half-Life 2 – Thief The Dark Project, re-released as Thief Gold, is now available for just 88 cents.
It’s 1998, a bumper year in the history of the best PC games. We’ve got Half-Life. We’ve got StarCraft. We’ve got Unreal, Baldur’s Gate, and LucasArts’ pioneering Grim Fandango. But secreted in the shadows, a new masterwork from the creators of System Shock. Mixing crisp stealth mechanics, a rich atmosphere, and a striking, gothic visual style, Thief The Dark Project emerges to reshape the RPG and pioneer the immersive sim genre.
It’s varied, it’s detailed, it’s deep – although you can play it your way, there’s a robust sense of character and story, all communicated by a tightly knit environmental design. With a plot co-written by BioShock’s Ken Levine, and Tom Leonard, later of Half-Life 2 and Left 4 Dead fame serving as lead programmer, Thief The Dark Project is a flashpoint in PC history. In fact, the likes of Starfield and Skyrim are all inspired by the original Thief.
And now it’s all yours for just 88 cents/69p. The Thief Gold package combines the original The Dark Project with the eponymous Gold update, which adds five new enemy types and three new campaign missions. So, if you want one of the best old games that still plays better than a lot of modern RPGs, just hit the button below.
Alternatively, look to the future with the best upcoming PC games making their way to you in 2024, or maybe try the best stealth games, all of which, you can bet, owe some inspiration to Thief.
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